


Honey for my Honey,

by Ruenis



Category: Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan, Etrian Odyssey Series
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-12
Updated: 2018-07-12
Packaged: 2019-06-09 04:35:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,288
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15259581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ruenis/pseuds/Ruenis
Summary: Azalea and her girlfriend contemplate the future of their pharmacy.





	Honey for my Honey,

Sitting upon a stool, Ajisai adjusts herself until she is comfortable, taking care to smooth out her skirt as her girlfriend finishes up a taste test of one of their newest herbal supplements. It is still difficult for her to come up with proper mixtures and discern which herb is which; Azalea has been teaching her slowly, and they have more than enough time to practise between opening and closing. What the Sniper is mixing right now smells of lavender, and she has been crushing the stalk and flowers into powder for quite some time now.

“.. d’ya remember.. what lavender’s for..?” Azalea asks quietly, and Ajisai leans over, glancing over the powder.

“It’s.. for Anthur,” Ajisai answers, unable to remember the exact reason for the powder.

They sell it in the pharmacy, but Anthur seems to be the person who uses it most, and sometimes Risu comes to pick it up for him whenever he runs out.

Azalea glances over toward her girlfriend, smiling slightly at her. “Anxiety,” she supplies, “You mix it in tea.. with honey, or anything else.. and it calms you down.”

The smell itself is quite calming enough already, and Ajisai _does_ remember that it is supposed to be used in small amounts. Azalea bottles the powder in glass jars that are supposed to last one person a month or so, and half a month if more than one person is taking it.

“It’s.. also used in cooking, isn’t it?” she asks the elf, red eyes lingering over the other girl’s pink hair. Truthfully, Azalea does most of the work around the shop – Ajisai has been learning to cook under Ib’s tutelage, but the Medic is more often busy with attending to Rue’s injuries. Eating actual meals has been nice, at least – the miasma tastes quite bitter, and Azalea’s supplements taste sweet, courtesy of Rue’s dislike of bitter things as well. The Arcanists have been treated extremely well in Tharsis, eating filling, delicious meals. “I saw Risu eat it straight off the stalk..”

“.. they weren’t supposed to,” Azalea murmurs, shaking her head a few times. “Lavender has a strong taste, and it.. is usually overpowering. But vessels are used to strong things.. aren’t you?” she questions, glancing again over toward the vessel.

Nodding and smiling, Ajisai pulls at her fluffy hair. Compared to Azalea’s, hers is far, _far_ more bulky, and the elf insists it is like a cloud, like a portable pillow that she carries ‘round with her. It takes quite some time to brush and clean.

Risu is the youngest of all of them, and in the village, they were quite the enigma. Unlike their siblings, Risu is extremely reserved, and they did not have many friends or interests outside of wandering around in the mist. They did, however, take an immediate liking to Anthur – the anxious Runemaster is equally quiet, and Risu seems to take a special interest in the explosive capabilities of Anthur’s spells.

“Your brother and his guild..” the vessel murmurs, thoughtful, “What will you do.. when he’s done with Tharsis?”

Rue is near the end of his journey; soon, there will be nothing left for him to explore in this particular area, and judging from what Azalea had mentioned before.. Once Rue is finished here, he will almost surely move on to some other faraway land, taking with him those who wish to continue exploring.

Azalea thinks about that for a moment, gently tapping her mortar against the pestle’s edge, cleaning it of the residual powder. “I think.. I’ll go with them, prob’ly,” she muses, grabbing a funnel and sticking it in the glass jar. The powder slides in easily when she dumps it into the funnel, and does not make a mess. With this last bowlful of powder, the jar is topped off, and ready for either Anthur or Risu to pick up. “Finding a nice, busy city would be better for business.. We could sell a lot more.. And I can’t leave my brother to Ib’s more effective medicine.. they hate the bitter taste of potions..” she continues, soft, and Ajisai feels her heart rise to her throat.

“.. wait, ‘we’?” she repeats after the elf, earning a small nod.

Shutting the jar and setting it aside, she sets a small snowball figurine on its lid, so that the regulars know that the jar is not for sale. “You’re coming with me, aren’t you, Sai?” she questions, about to wash her hands of excess powder when Ajisai jumps off the stool and hugs her tightly from behind.

“Yes! Of course!” the vessel cries, nodding against Azalea’s cheek, “I’ll come with you!”

Azalea remains still as Ajisai presses a kiss against her cheek, and then another against her hair – it is warm, it is always warm, and she appreciates how affectionate the vessel is. “You.. really wouldn’t mind leaving Tharsis.. and the Misty Ravine?” she asks quietly, and Ajisai shakes her head vigorously.

It is clear that she has already made up her mind; she intends on staying at Azalea’s side as long she can.

“I want to stay with you,” Ajisai insists, pressing their cheeks together again, loosening her grip just enough to let the Sniper wash her hands.

Azalea does, running them under warm water to rinse off anything that may be sticking to them, and dries them with a nearby towel. As soon as she is finished, Ajisai hugs her tighter again, pressing another kiss to her cheek. The vessel’s hair tickles her skin, the wild, untamed fluff lingering against her neck. “I.. want t’ stay with you, too,” she murmurs, and the admission earns her a gleeful laugh from her girlfriend.

“I’ll get better at mixing medicine,” Ajisai promises, sweet, “I’ll try anything you make.. And we can settle down in the city and get married..”

Azalea feels her heart skip at the sound of that. It has always been a goal of hers to find a nice girl to settle down with, and Ajisai is exactly that and much, _much_ more – the vessel genuinely loves her, and Azalea finds herself much happier than she used to be, though there was nothing particularly _wrong_ before. There had just been something missing.

_Someone._

“.. yeah,” she finally says, nodding a bit, “We can.. get married, and..”

Ajisai laughs again, clearly happy with the response, and spins the pink haired Sniper ‘round, taking Azalea’s hands in her own. “We’ll have to save up so we can set up somewhere in any city your brother visits,” she says firmly, visibly eager to hurry and find somewhere the two of them can truly call home, “And then we can plan a wedding, and..”

Azalea nods again, amber eyes lingering over the vessel’s red. It will take some getting used to, acclimating to a real, actual, busy city – it will take some getting used to for the both of them. Ajisai walks ‘round barefoot most of the time, in whatever clothes Azalea buys for her, and Azalea still gets lost in narrow streets and alleys, but..

“Azzy,” Ajisai calls affectionately, squeezing her hands, “Thank you. For letting me stay with you.”

Softening, the elf leans up and presses a kiss to Ajisai’s cheek, lingering, warm still, “You’re.. welcome, Sai. We’ll make our dreams come true.” She pulls away after a moment, and glances over at the leftover lavender stalks. “Do you want tea?” she asks softly, earning another eager nod; Ajisai is always more than happy to test anything she gives her and offer advice on how to improve it.

Ajisai sits herself back down on her stool, smoothing her skirt once more. “Add honey, please,” she says, and her girlfriend offers her a glancing, warm smile.

“Of course, honey.”

**Author's Note:**

> my debut into one of my most favourite fandoms! i've always wanted to write for EO, so hopefully i can write some more really soon~


End file.
